Ramadan begins for Muslims around the world

The month of Ramadan arrived on Sunday for many Muslims around the globe, obliging them to fast from sunrise to sunset and strive to be more pious and charitable.

Ramadan is sacred to Muslims because it is during that month that that Quran was revealed to the Prophet Mohammad.

During Ramadan, Muslims fast from food and drink from dawn to dusk. They are also required to abstain from drinking liquids, smoking and having sex.

The fast is one of the five main religious obligations under Islam.

It began on Sunday June 29 in most Arab countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, and Bahrain, along with many Western countries and is expected to end around July 29.

The beginning of Ramadan was confirmed by Saudi Arabia’s Islamic project on Friday, saying that the crescent moon would be revealed to the naked eye on Sunday, therefore symbolizing the start of the holy month.

Other Arab and Islamic countries also announced that Ramadan will start on Sunday. These include Tunisia, Algeria and Libya, Oman, Egypt, Jordan, Sudan, Palestine, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Yemen and Turkey are the only countries in the region that declared Saturday as the first day of Ramadan.

As this year’s holy month falls in summer, some parts of the northern hemisphere will face fasting periods that last up to 21 hours, due to longer daylight hours.

Twitter has partnered with Al Arabiya News Channel to better inform tweeps about Ramadan meal and fasting timings across the world.

The time of Iftar – the breaking of fast, and Imsak – the beginning of fast can be accessed on Twitter by tweeting @AlArabiya_Eng.

Starting on Saturday, tweet @AlArabiya_Eng with #iftar followed by hashtagging the name of your city (e.g. @AlArabiya_Eng #Iftar #Dubai), and the @AlArabiya_Eng account will send you the time for #iftar.

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